REPORT DATE: 08-07-2018
REPORT TIME: 0155 UTC
REGION: GULF OF MEXICO
SUB REGION: N/A
AREA/BLOCK: MISSISSIPPI CANYON   807 
IMAGE DATE: 08-07-2018
IMAGE TIME: 0000 UTC
DATA SOURCE: RADARSAT2 
MODE: ScanSAR Narrow VV
RESOLUTION: 50 meter
LOCATION: 28°10'10" N/89°13'23" W
AREA: 7.66 square kilometers (Updated 05/26/2020)
CONFIDENCE: Medium-High
REMARKS: Possible oil was observed in satellite imagery. This anomaly is unconfirmed as oil. The anomaly appeared to have emanated near/from an oil facility located approximately 116 nm SSE of New Orleans in Mississippi Canyon area block 807. The anomaly was about 8 nm in length, averaged 0.2 nm in width, had a high contrast to its surroundings, had an unnaturally-sharp turn, and clearly stood out of place. The anomaly's orientation to the east somewhat agreed with model ocean currents estimated at 1 kt toward the east at the time of the image.

UNCERTAINTIES: Since there was no report from another agency confirming a recent spill at the point source location, we only have a Medium-High confidence that the anomaly was oil instead of High confidence.


ANALYST: VELASCO
Maps and shapefiles can be accessed at: www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/ocean/marinepollution/

ERMA: https://erma.noaa.gov/gulfofmexico/erma.html#/layers=1+46674&x=-89.18191949999999&y=28.1513835&z=11&panel=layer

For further information on oil spill response and assessment go to: https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/oil-and-chemical-spills/oil-spills

If you would like to share any feedback about this report or have questions, please contact the operational analyst at (301) 683-1403 or send to oceanmap@noaa.gov. Email alerts are available only for federal and state government officials involved in response efforts. Requests to be added to the email alerts should also be sent to oceanmap@noaa.gov. Please allow up to 2 business days to process the request.